Workshop: Building a Better Fieldwork Future: Preventing & Managing Sexual Harassment in field settings

Presenter: Dr. Amanda Adams, Conservation Research Program Manager, Bat Conservation International and Lecturer, Biology, Texas A&M University. 

Fieldwork is an important and often necessary component of many scientific disciplines, yet research suggests that it presents a high-risk setting for incidents of sexual harassment and assault. The Building a Better Fieldwork Future (BBFF) Program involves a 90-minute workshop developed by a team of field researchers at UC Santa Cruz. It identifies the unique risks posed by fieldwork and offers a suite of evidence-based tools for field researchers, instructors, and students to prevent, intervene in, and respond to sexual harassment and assault. Through a series of practical intervention scenarios, this workshop guides participants on how to be an active and engaged bystander, how to report incidents, and how to plan field settings to minimize risk. Armed with these tools, participants can play a role in ensuring that field settings are safer, more equitable, and more welcoming for the next generation of field scientists. 

ESF Women’s Caucus, ESF Choose Action Network and the Center to Advance Mentored, Inquiry-based Opportunities (CAMINO) at UC-Santa Cruz.